In That Moment
by Extraordinarily Extraordinary
Summary: "The answers come to her all at once, in that moment." ***HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO MY BESTEST MOST AMAZING MOST WONDERFUL TOTALLY TERRIFIC BEST FRIEND LEXI! HAVE A GREAT DAY! HAPPY 16TH BIRTHDAY! I LOVE YOU!***


**HAPPY BIRTHDAY ALEXA BENNETT! YOU'RE MY BEST FRIEND AND I'M SO HAPPY I KNOW YOU. I LOVE YOU SO MUCH LEXI. HAPPY 16TH BIRTHDAY! **

**DISCLAIMER: I own nothing. ABC, Andrew Marlowe and everyone who works on this amazing show owns it all. I was just playing with it to make my best friend happy on her birthday.**

**It's mostly dialogue and not my best work but it's the thought that counts.**

**Enjoy! And happy birthday Lexi! :)**

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The doorbell rings and she runs to answer it, a slight tingle in her stomach. She hopes it's her husband, home from his book tour. She knows it's still early, way earlier than he said he'd be home, but she cannot stop hoping it is him.

It's not. It's Alexis. She tries her hardest to look happy to see her, but all she feels in the pit of her stomach is disappointment. She is happy to see Alexis, but she would have been happier to see her husband, the man she loves more than life itself.

It's been almost three weeks since Kate last saw Rick. Three weeks without him smiling at her, laughing with her, cooking for her. She hasn't cuddled with him in twenty days; she hasn't smelled him or breathed him in. She hasn't tousled his hair or felt his arm wrap around her shoulders. She hasn't held his hand or sat on his lap. She misses kissing him, hugging him, lying next to him in bed. She misses her other half, her better part. She misses her husband.

The phone rings and Alexis runs to grab it.

"Are you expecting a call?" Kate asks her, curiosity setting in. It registers in her mind that Alexis never said she was going to stop by tonight.

"Kind of," Alexis shrugs. "It's nothing important though. And it's not for me." She hands the phone to Kate and she looks at the caller ID: _Rick Castle._

A bubble of happiness builds up inside her. "Hello?" she answers the phone and, before he has a chance to speak, she says, "I miss you."

"I miss you too, Babe," he laughs before his tone drops to a serious one, "but something has come up. I don't think I'll be making it home tonight. I'm so sorry, Kate."

"What?" she tries to hide her disappointment once more, "why not?"

"There's a storm, all the planes are grounded until further notice. I was just about to board when they made the announcement. I'm sorry. I'll be home as soon as I can. People are saying the storm will be gone by midnight and I will get on the first plane I can. I'm coming home to you, I promise," he says. She can hear the sadness in his voice.

"It's okay. I miss you but I suppose I can wait a few more hours. Just…be safe, okay? Promise you'll be safe," Kate says sadly into the phone.

"Always," he replies. "I gotta go. The power is probably going out soon and I really need to save my battery. I miss you. I love you Kate."

"Love you too," she says. "Goodbye." And she hangs up the phone.

"Everything okay?" Alexis asks as soon as the phone shuts off. "You sound sad."

"Yeah, it's fine. Your dad is stuck; he won't be home tonight after all," Kate replies. "It's all going to be okay though, don't worry."

"Ahh, I'm sorry Kate. I know you were really looking forward to him coming home," the redhead says. "I can stay tonight, if you want?"

"Yes, thanks Lexi, that would be wonderful," Kate says, using the nickname she loves for her husband's daughter. After all this time, Lexi really did seem like her own daughter. "So, about that call you were waiting for?"

"Oh, right," Lexi says. "Well, you see, this girl I'm friends with – Sarah – she's really worried about…something…and she was going to call tonight but I lost my cell charger so I gave her this number in case she really needs to talk."

"That's a great thing to do for your friend," Kate says. "What's she worried about?"

Alexis pauses, "I don't know if I should tell you…"

"Well, if it's something personal, you don't have to tell me, but I promise I'll keep it a secret. I won't even tell your dad, if that's what you're worried about."

"Yeah?" Alexis says. Kate nods and watches the redhead open her mouth again, "Okay, so Sarah thinks she might be pregnant because she's really late and she's super nervous because she just broke up with her boyfriend, and he's the only one who could be the father…if she really is pregnant. So she was going to buy a test – I offered to go with her but she said she wanted to do it alone – and then she was going to call to either tell me it was a false alarm or just to talk and figure things out if she is pregnant."

"Wow, that's a big deal Lexi," Kate says. "If I can do anything to help, with anything at all, just let me know, okay? I can help give advice or anything."

"Thanks Kate," Lexi says. "You're the best."

Kate smiles at Lexi and lets her wander off to the kitchen to find some food to wait with by the phone.

Her mind wanders, in multiple directions, before deciding on one path to focus on:

_Alexis' friend might be pregnant? That's a big deal. She can't be any older than twenty-five. That's a really young age to have a baby. It takes a lot of preparation to become a mother, no matter how old you are…even if you're in your thirties. Like me. I'm in my thirties. And it would be terrifying to be pregnant. Wonderful, yes, but still really scary. I would love a baby. One day. Maybe soon. Actually…_

She comes back to the present and gasps. Luckily, Lexi doesn't hear her.

"Lexi, I'll be right back, okay? Just, stay here and hold down the fort," Kate says, grabbing her keys and running out the door before Alexis can even ask where she's going.

It only takes her a few minutes before she walks back in the door, carrying a bag full of chips and soda.

"Is that for us?" Lexi asks when she sees Kate walk back in.

"Yeah, I thought we could have a night in, watch movies and talk and wait up for your dad. He said he'd probably get on a plane around midnight so he'd likely be home around two or three. How's that sound?" Kate suggests to Lexi. "Good?"

"Sounds awesome," Alexis says. "Let me go grab some movies from my room. Rom-com sound good?"

"Perfect. There's a few things I need to do quickly before we start too. Reconvene in fifteen minutes?"

"Good plan," Lexi says and she runs off to look for movies.

Kate breathes a sigh of relief and she pulls out all of the junk food to reveal the real reason she ran out in such a hurry: the pregnancy tests. She bought three, just to be sure. All that thinking about Sarah made her think…she's late too.

She heads off to her bathroom and closes the door. She pees on the stick and then sits down and waits.

Does she want to be pregnant? When she first met Castle, the answer would have been no. She never thought about having kids. Her life was too messed up to bring another person into it. But then she met Castle and he slowly cleaned up her life. Castle did wonders for her. But it was Rick, the man she truly fell in love with, who changed her mind. She fell in love with him and began to see all the wonders he saw in the world. She saw the happiness and laughter and beauty. She learned that life isn't about winning or losing; it's about seeing everything you can see in whatever time you have, it's about falling head over heels in love, having fun, laughing, travelling the world. It's about being happy. Rick Castle makes her happy. But will a baby? She really doesn't know. Part of her wants to have a family with the man she loves, but it would change her whole life and she doesn't know if she's ready for that.

She takes a deep breath, flips the test over and feels her heart beat in her chest.

"Kate?" Alexis calls from the main room. "You coming?"

"Yeah, I'm on my way," Kate says, leaving the bathroom and closing the door behind her. "What movies have you got?"

"27 Dresses? I love this movie," Lexi says.

"Me too, sounds like a good choice."

They put the movie on and pull out the snacks. Time flies quickly and the next thing Kate knows, she being woken up by Lexi.

"Dad's on his way home. He just called from the airport. He's in the car right now. He should be here any minute," Lexi says excitedly.

"Oh good! Wait, what time is it? Did I fall asleep? Did Sarah ever call?" Kate says.

"It's three-thirty, yes you did, and yes she did; she's not pregnant," Lexi answers.

"Oh good," Kate smiles. "I'm glad she's not. That would've been a struggle for her."

"Yeah, I know," Lexi says. "But to be honest, I kind of got excited about the fact that there might be a baby around. I love babies, you know?"

"Yeah? Well then, there's something you-"

"Honey, I'm home," they hear from the front door as Castle lets himself in.

Kate runs to him, jumping into his arms and grinning like crazy. She attacks him with a kiss and refuses to let him go.

"I missed you too," he smiles against her lips.

"You have no idea," she says. The smile won't leave her face.

"Hey Dad, welcome home," Alexis says.

"Hey Lexi, what are you doing here? Not that I'm not happy to see you," Rick says to his daughter.

"Oh right, yeah, I need a new phone charger…"

Castle laughs and pulls Lexi into a hug alongside Kate.

"Wait! Kate was about to say something when you so rudely interrupted," Alexis says. "What was it?"

"Hmm, what's this? A secret? DO I GET TO KNOW?" Castle laughs and his girls laugh with him. "Seriously though, do I get to know?"

"Yes, you both should know," Kate nods. "See, the thing is…I'm pregnant."

The cheers that erupt could wake the entire building. Castle, being the man he is, lifts his wife up and twirls her around and around and around until she makes him put her down because she feels too dizzy.

"You're actually, really, seriously, totally, completely pregnant?" he asks and she nods, causing him to burst into an excited round of shouting once again.

The answers come to her all at once, in that moment. Her life is going to change now. From this moment on, everything is going to be different. It will never be like it is right this very second. Surrounded by the people she loves, laughing and excitedly shouting at each other. It will never be like this. Everything is about to change. But standing with Rick and Lexi, Kate knows that everything is about to change for the better. Everything is going to be different, it will never be like this, but that is a good thing. It's the best thing that could ever happen to her. Her eyes fill with tears and she lets them fall because they're not sad tears, they're happy tears. She's happy. And she knows she always will be.

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**Hope you liked it! Please leave a review! AND HAPPY BIRTHDAY LEXI!**

** u/4134043/16abennett**


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